


those boots look great on you

by vaahtokarkki



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Minor Injuries, in the 2nd chapter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-18
Updated: 2019-04-13
Packaged: 2019-11-24 02:22:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18160211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vaahtokarkki/pseuds/vaahtokarkki
Summary: Shu gets more than he expected after agreeing to help with UNDEAD's new costumes.To be fair, running into each other outside of schoolisa coincidence.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> hey!! here's the first chapter of a two-parter. this is a fic I've been really looking forward to releasing, but as usual, had to push it back a bit due to school and other stuff. the second chapter only lacks the ending, so I hope to finish it soon! I hope you enjoy this!!

Rei is late from the agreed time. Shu finds that he lets a lot of things pass when it comes to his eccentrics, including this – perhaps he’s become a bit too soft.

”Apologies for being late”, Rei says as soon as he enters the room, and Shu nods in approval – at least he acknowledges his mistake.

”I have no plans after this, so it is of little consequence”, Shu waves his hand, and Rei gives him a small smile before closing the door behind him. ”You wanted my input on your upcoming outfits?”

”Yes, I’d appreciate if you took a look at the designs. I know you’re busy, so I won’t ask you to _make_ them, but I’d like an expert’s opinion.”

”Let’s have a look, then”, Shu agrees. He would offer to make them – Rei deserves the best possible quality – but he _has_ been busy, so perhaps he shouldn’t take on any extra work.

The outfits are in typical UNDEAD fashion, black and purple with gold linings. For the colours, Shu has no complaints; he does think they could try different ones sometimes, but knows these are a part of UNDEAD’s brand, just like Valkyrie’s colours are a part of theirs. Perhaps Rei would agree to red, which looks flattering on him – and would look _incredibly_ flattering on Kaoru, if Shu is honest with himself.

Rei doesn’t rush Shu as he looks carefully through the designs. They’re very fitting for Rei’s unit, and the longer Shu looks, the more he feels like he doesn’t _have_ any input. He doesn’t want to make anything up, but he will feel like he has failed if he has _nothing_ to offer to Rei, who took the time to seek him out for this.

”Well, these look good, and should suit all of you well. Especially Hakaze, I’d say.”

”Huh”, Rei mutters, and Shu’s attention is immediately drawn by that single sound.

”What is it?”

”I didn’t know you paid attention to him, is all”, Rei glances over the designs as well, a small smile on his lips.

”We _are_ classmates”, Shu huffs, ”and he is certainly preferable to every _other_ classmate I have.”

”Your favourite, then?”

”That’s not what I meant, and you know it!” Shu can _feel_ his cheeks heat up.

”It’s okay, I think he’s cute too”, Rei winks, and Shu groans.

”Did you come here for design input, or to tease me?”

”Sorry, sorry”, Rei laughs. ”I’ll behave, I promise.”

”Then can we get back to the designs?” Shu sighs.

The more he looks at the sketches, the more he itches to _make_ them, but he has his hands full already, for sure. Rei would probably object, too, knowing as much.

Shu has dressed Rei before, but he’s never dressed Kaoru, and the more he thinks about it, the more he wants to see something of his making on the boy. He already knows which colours would suit him, compliment his hair and eyes and truly make him glow –

Not the time or place, Shu reminds himself, and focuses back on the outfits before he manages to fluster himself further.

 

* * *

 

It hasn’t yet been two full days since he last saw Rei, but Shu’s friend comes to see him again, expression nothing short of apologetic.

”Don’t say it”, Shu says before Rei can even open his mouth. ”You need something sewn.”

”Our costumer just told me, with the time he’s got, he can only get two of the outfits made. So I thought...”

”Naturally, I’d be your first option.”

It’s not bragging, it’s facts – they both know it; that in a hurry, the only one Rei could trust to finish the job and do it well – is Shu.

”Only if you don’t sacrifice your health for it”, Rei demands. As if Shu was going to uphold such a promise.

”Only if the ones I get to dress are you and Hakaze”, Shu frowns. Rei’s eyebrows shoot up, and then his mouth opens into a toothy smile.

”I thought you said you’re not playing favourites.”

”When it comes to aesthetics, you’re obviously the first choice. As for Hakaze, I’ve wanted to dress him for a while now”, Shu crosses his arms with a huff. It’s only a logical explanation, but Rei looks like it was his birthday, grin only growing wider. ”Besides, one of those boys is _loud_.”

”Should I schedule Kaoru-kun for an appointment, then?”

”You already have his measurements, correct? Just hand them to me. I see him enough to infer the rest.”

”You’ve paid attention, huh?” Rei’s smile just doesn’t falter, and Shu groans. Perhaps this is a bad idea after all – if he wants to dress Kaoru, he can always just… ask him, or – well, maybe not, because meeting alone with Kaoru would probably spring up some unfortunate rumours, so official business _would_ be preferable –

Shu clicks his tongue upon realising he’s got lost in thought, thinking about Kaoru dressed in red, gold, something that would flatter his shoulders, his neck, his waist, a colour that would highlight that curious shade of gold in his eyes –

”Could you repeat the question?” he asks, throat dry, but remembers what Rei _did_ ask just as Rei opens his mouth. ”Wait – no, don’t, because I’m not answering it. And _stop_ looking like you have uncovered some grand secret, because you _haven’t,_ and – and...”

”I’ll try”, Rei promises, clearly holding back laughter, and Shu huffs once more, just for effect.

”Great, because it would be a shame if I didn’t have the time to make these outfits after all.”

He wouldn’t leave Rei in trouble, and they both know it, but Rei simply nods again, clearing his throat.

”Of course. I truly appreciate your help, and I’ll send you Kaoru-kun’s… measurements.” Rei pauses, and for a moment, Shu thinks he’s finally decided to stop teasing, but then he grins once more, unable to resist the temptation. ”Try not to stare at him _too_ much in class. He can be quite shy under that exterior.”

”Rei!” Shu hisses, and now Rei breaks into laughter, more bubbly than his usual chuckle.

Shu can’t be angry at him when he’s leaving himself so unguarded.

 

* * *

  
  
Measurements can only take Shu so far, even with all his skills, so finally he allows Rei to schedule that appointment with Kaoru. He’s unnecessarily nervous before it, worrying over his _hair_ of all things, ruffling it every time he passes a mirror. He frets over the clothes Kaoru will wear, whether they fit, whether Kaoru will like them – foolish, since the clothes are excellent and Kaoru will wear them whether he likes them or not – but Shu finds himself unable to stop worrying about these meaningless details.

Shu prepares tea and croissants, like he always does, and the croissants almost burn because he thinks about the boots chosen to go with UNDEAD’s outfits. An unforgivable blunder in a long string of blunders. Really, the way just thinking about Kaoru distracts him is irritating, but strangely… he almost likes it. Which makes it even more irritating.

Then there’s a knock on the door, and Shu’s hands start shaking so badly he nearly knocks over the tea he prepared.

”Curses!” he hisses, stumbling over his feet in an attempt to regain his composure. He walks to the door slowly, taking a few deep breaths before opening it.

”Ah, Hakaze”, Shu greets, keeping his tone even, casual, like he _hasn’t_ been pacing in circles for the last hour.

”Itsuki-kun”, Kaoru smiles, and just a simple smile shouldn’t make Shu feel so – so _giddy,_ but it does, and he swallows hard as he steps aside to let Kaoru pass through the door.

”Come in, then. Your outfit isn’t entirely ready, but after you try it on, I can make the final touches.”

Kaoru nods and carefully walks into the room. Shu closes the door and flexes his hands, balls them into fists and then releases, but they still shake, and he takes Mademoiselle from a nearby table, desperately trying to keep her still.

”Oh”, Kaoru’s face lights up at the sight of her. ”Good afternoon, Mademoiselle-chan. You’re well today, I hope?”

The ease with which Kaoru speaks to Mademoiselle stings, somehow, but Mademoiselle doesn’t falter.

” _Good afternoon, Kaoru-kun! I’m well today, though Shu-kun has been more nervous than usual.”_

Kaoru lifts his eyebrows but doesn’t comment on it, and instead turns his gaze to the table with the croissants and the tea.

”For you”, Shu says stiffly, a harsh comparison to Mademoiselle’s lyrical sentences; he feels ashamed, but Kaoru doesn’t seem bothered.

”Really? Thanks”, Kaoru takes another look at the table, ”though I don’t think I can eat this many. And we’re supposed to fit my costume, right?”

”Right”, Shu mutters. How silly of him – he may have gotten carried away with the food, and he can’t bear the thought of _Kaoru_ thinking he’s silly. Suddenly distressed, Mademoiselle covers for him. _”Will you at least have some tea?”_

”Oh? Huh? I mean, of course --” Kaoru blinks, seemingly uncertain about something. ”Sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude. We can look at the costume first and then eat, right?”

Relief floods through Shu, and his mouth twitches, trying to turn into a smile.

” _Of course. Shu-kun has waited to show this outfit to you, you know~”_

”Okay, that’s enough”, Shu lays Mademoiselle down before she can say any more. Kaoru flashes Shu a small smile, and Shu clears his throat. ”So, so… the clothes.” Shu has prepared them, of course, and they rest on a nearby table, ready for Kaoru. ”There’s a folding screen you can change behind, for a little privacy.”

”Thanks”, Kaoru carefully picks up the clothes and looks them all over. ”Wow, huh, these look really well-made.”

”I wouldn’t give anything but my best. You are in Rei’s unit, after all”, Shu scoffs, and when Kaoru glances at him, Shu thinks he looks almost… down, somehow, but the moment is long over before Shu can grasp it.

”Right, I’ll get to it, then”, Kaoru nods, retreating behind the folding screen. Did Shu say something wrong? It’s likely, considering his track record. With a sigh, he busies himself with looking over his calculations once more, the notes on which parts of the outfit he has to concentrate on.

On the table lies a carefully drawn sketch of the desired final look of the outfit, which Shu draws his fingers over while trying to not think of Kaoru in a state of half-dress.

”Itsuki-kun?” Kaoru’s voice startles Shu, and he nearly yelps as he spins around, a mistake that shouldn’t have occurred. Kaoru looks fairly amused at his reaction, and Shu clears his throat.

”Yes?”

”The boots...” Kaoru is otherwise dressed, and only now does Shu give him a look over.

Well, he looks – if Shu were to describe – perhaps – divine?

”What about the boots?” he manages to ask, eyes darting from Kaoru’s face to his chest to his legs.

”I’m not sure about the lacing”, Kaoru admits. ”It seems kind of elaborate. Would you mind giving me a hand?”

”Not at all”, Shu strides to him. ”Pull them on, and I’ll take a look.”

Kaoru complies, and Shu gets caught in the way the fabric moves when Kaoru leans down. He seems to have done excellent work, as Kaoru’s movements don’t seem hindered by the clothes. That’s good – that’s really good.

Once Kaoru has pulled the boots on, Shu promptly kneels down to lace them up. They _are_ quite fancy, and Shu has to admit, Rei has good taste. He laces them the way Rei showed him, completely focused on the shoes, until he makes the mistake of glancing up at Kaoru. Kaoru’s face is slightly flushed as his eyes keep darting down at Shu, and Shu quickly looks back down to do the rest of the lacing with double speed.

”There”, Shu finally sighs, running a hand through his hair as he stands up. ”How does everything feel?”

”So far, so good”, Kaoru stretches his legs, moves his arms, glances down behind him. ”How does it look?”

How does it look? Shu wouldn’t want to lie, but he can’t just – tell Kaoru the _truth,_ can he? That the dark purple works better than he initially thought, that the golden details bring out Kaoru’s eyes, that the pants and boots flatter his legs in a way Shu never paid attention to before, not when all he usually sees Kaoru in are their dreary uniform pants.

That the way he’s looking at Shu – questioning, almost uncertain – is unbelievably adorable, and makes Shu want to take one step closer, let adjective after adjective spill from his lips, _beautiful, radiant, enchanting, enthralling, breathtaking, magnificent –_

But he shouldn’t, so after a short pause that causes Kaoru’s brows to crease slightly, Shu forces words, _any_ words out of his mouth.

”You look… it looks...” _Words,_ Itsuki, not stutters. ”It suits you. Rei did good work with the designs – it really… well, I have no complaints about the way you – it – looks.”

A fatal slip of the tongue, and Kaoru’s eyebrows shoot up as what looks like a faint blush darkens his cheeks.

”Oh, that’s – thank you. These really _are_ something, huh? I hadn’t even seen the sketches before, so...”

”At least you didn’t have problems putting it on”, Shu nods. ”Hmm… it does seem to fit you properly, too. Let me just...” He circles Kaoru, this time actually focusing on the outfit. Maybe he gets a little distracted by Kaoru’s shoulders, but really, who wouldn’t? They’re a very nice-looking set of broad shoulders.

”Does it look okay over there too?” Kaoru’s voice shakes Shu out of his thoughts.

”Huh? Yes”, Shu replies immediately. Did he get distracted from the outfit again? Curse those shoulders! ”It seems to fit from every angle. And moving in it is okay, too?”

”As far as I can tell”, Kaoru confirms, stretching out some more. He does a few basic dance moves, and Shu nods approvingly.

”Well… everything seems to be in order.” Shu writes down a few notes, then nods again. ”You can take it off. Don’t worry about the boots – the lacing is easier to open than to tie.”

Kaoru leaves behind the folding screen again, and Shu sighs, writing down more details. Fortunately, he did an expert job with the measurements Rei gave him, so the outfit is all but finished already. What else, what else…

His eyes get caught on the croissants he prepared. The croissants! The tea! He nearly forgot about them, and rushes to pour tea into two cups. The tea should still be warm, even if the croissants won’t be.

When Kaoru emerges from behind the folding screen, Shu is all ready with the food, and he picks Mademoiselle up just to be safe.

”Leave the clothes over there”, Shu gestures towards an empty table. ”Here, your tea.”

Kaoru folds the clothes before setting them down – a detail Shu appreciates. How polite of him.

”Thank you”, Kaoru takes the cup, and also picks up a croissant. ”So, no need for further fittings?”

”I don’t believe so”, Shu replies, sipping from his own cup. Hm, still warm. That’s good. ”There are only some details I need to make, and then I’ll get it delivered to you. The live is in less than two weeks, no?”

”Yeah”, Kaoru nods.

”Hm… I should wish you luck, then.” Shu doesn’t like relying on something such as _luck,_ but perhaps it’s an appropriate phrase here.

”Thanks”, Kaoru says again, but this time, the word is accompanied by a radiant smile, and Shu blinks, momentarily lost.

”H… how is the tea?” Shu asks.

”Oh? It’s good”, Kaoru nods, still smiling.

”Okay. Good.” Shu sets his cup down. ”Ah… I suppose that will be all I require from you today.”

He doesn’t want to let Kaoru leave yet, but has no idea how to make the visit longer. Besides, if Kaoru keeps smiling like that, Shu _will_ say something embarrassing, and he can’t bear for that to happen.

”Oh”, Kaoru blinks. ”Right, you’re probably busy.”

”Finish your tea, at least”, Shu shakes his head. ”There’s no need to hurry.”

Truth be told, if Kaoru asked, Shu would cast aside his current responsibilities – dangerous, really, because his work should take priority over everything – and maybe that’s precisely why he has to send Kaoru away before he gets tempted to spend even more time with him.

To Shu’s delight, before Kaoru’s cup is empty, he takes another croissant. That should mean he liked them, right…? Shu himself settles for one. The tea isn’t his best, but if Kaoru likes it, that’s enough.

Kaoru finishes the croissant, as well as the tea, and when he leaves, Shu doesn’t know if he’s more relieved or disappointed. But at least now he can breathe, calm himself, think of anything that isn’t golden hair or honey eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here's the second chapter for this fic! the atmosphere changes quite a bit, haha~ thank you everyone for your support! <3
> 
> as mentioned in the tags, this chapter contains minor injuries and some blood as well as a short conversation about violence, but no actual violence happens.

Shu is on his way home after a late run at the grocery store when something – _someone_ – catches his attention.

They’re hunched against a wall, clearly not stable on their feet, and Shu almost keeps walking, it’s none of his business – but something makes him look again; the shape of their shoulders, the length of their hair –

”Hakaze”, Shu breathes, and the boy freezes and then scrambles to step away from the wall, like he wants to pretend he never needed its support.

Shu steps closer, and Kaoru turns his face away.

”Hakaze, what –” Shu carefully raises a hand, but Kaoru interrupts him.

”It’s nothing”, he claims, a lie so blatant that he can’t _possibly_ expect it to be convincing. ”You should go.”

”No, no, I can’t.” Shu shakes his head. ”What happened?”

”Nothing”, Kaoru says, more forcefully, and something painful twists inside Shu. Something like this wouldn’t – _shouldn’t_ – be his business, but it’s _Kaoru_ , and something’s wrong, and the thought of leaving is utterly unthinkable. How could he leave?

”Please let me see you”, Shu asks, and he detests using the word _please_ in any situation, but he fears if he doesn’t now, Kaoru will slip away without letting him help.

_Help,_ he repeats the word in his head. Him, helping someone. He would get more caught up on the thought, but it’s overridden by something more urgent, more pressing; Kaoru slowly lifting his face.

The bruise is on top of his left cheekbone, already darkening, and Shu gasps at the sight of it.

”They were gonna mug this old man”, Kaoru explains quietly, ”and I couldn’t – I had to...”

”Shh, shh, it’s okay”, Shu reassures, ”you can tell me while we walk.”

”Walk where?” Kaoru frowns.

”To my house, of course. I’m going to take a look at that.”

”You don’t have to, I can take care of it –”

”Don’t be stubborn, Hakaze”, Shu huffs. ”I can’t let you go alone like this –”

”I told you, it’s –” Kaoru’s words end abruptly in a hiss and a twitch of his arm. On the back of his forearm, Shu thinks he sees…

”Let me see that.” Shu holds out his hand, and this time, Kaoru doesn’t protest. Shu takes his hand and lifts it to an angle where he can see it better.

”One of them had a knife”, Kaoru mutters, not looking at Shu.

”One of them _what.”_ Shu tugs at Kaoru’s hand, tilts his arm further. His head spins at the sight of the dark spot on Kaoru’s sleeve. ” _Hakaze.”_

”Yeah.” Kaoru’s eyes are cast on the ground. ”I’m s –”

”No, no, I’m not mad”, Shu hushes, suddenly realising what Kaoru is the most concerned about in this situation. ”But you are coming home with me, as you are _not_ going off alone while _bleeding_.”

”Yeah”, Kaoru finally agrees. ”Yeah, I’ll do that.”

”Good”, Shu sighs. ”Come on then, I want to get ice on that bruise before it gets worse.”

Shu doesn’t realise he never stopped holding Kaoru’s hand until he has to let go to unlock his door.

 

* * *

 

Kaoru has been quiet ever since he agreed to come along, and Shu hopes it’s not because of the blood loss, though fortunately it doesn’t seem to be severe. He takes Kaoru straight to the bathroom and seats him on the toilet. There, he hands Kaoru an ice packs he wraps in a hand towel.

”Just hold it to your cheek after your jacket and your shirt”, Shu instructs, and for the first time in a while, Kaoru actually looks at him – though Shu wasn’t expecting his expression to be surprised. ”Off, please.”

”Oh.” Kaoru blinks, then lifts his hands to his jacket buttons – but winces visibly at moving his left.

”Wait, wait, I’ll do that for you.” Shu briefly lays his fingers on Kaoru’s knuckles. Kaoru’s skin is warm under his, and Shu loses his focus, but just for a second.

He leans down to unbutton Kaoru’s school jacket, and up this close, has to focus to not let his eyes stray to Kaoru’s face. Kaoru on the other hand seems to be having trouble looking anywhere _but_ Shu, and Shu can feel his own skin flush at the thought. When he goes for the dress shirt he notes that Kaoru’s face is dyed a deep red.

That’s good, isn’t it? It means his blood circulation is functioning normally.

”Don’t fidget”, Shu mutters, and Kaoru obeys.

”Just to warn you, there’s one further down too”, Kaoru says, and Shu is about to ask, one _what,_ when he glances down and spots the dark against the otherwise white shirt.

” _Really?”_ Shu groans, extending a shaking hand towards Kaoru’s side – but decides against touching the wound yet. ”And you were going to go home alone, take care of these yourself? Hakaze, these are dangerous. You have a live in a _week_.”

He can’t help the scolding in his tone, but the sight of Kaoru’s blood makes him nervous, _scared_. When he begins unbuttoning Kaoru’s shirt, his fingers shake.

Kaoru stays silent, and Shu needs a moment to realise it’s because he’s ashamed. By now it’s probably too late to soften the previous words, and Shu sighs, cursing that it’s so easy for Mademoiselle to talk to Kaoru while Shu always seems to say the wrong things.

To make up for the harshness of his words, Shu tries to be gentle when pulling off Kaoru’s shirts. Seeing the red against Kaoru’s skin makes him suck in a breath and then grit his teeth.

”Are you bad with blood? I could… I could do this myself...” Kaoru says uncertainly, lifting the ice pack to his cheek.

”I sew”, Shu remarks, as if that explains everything – and Kaoru seems to get it, as he nods.

It’s not that Shu was unused to blood. It’s that the blood is Kaoru’s, and the reason it was spilled was because someone took out a knife on him.

And _that_ makes Shu’s stomach twist. The knife didn’t do any fatal damage, but with less luck this could have been much worse than the flesh wounds.

Shu starts with the waist. There’s a distant thought in his head that he should be caught up on Kaoru being shirtless, but he determinedly pushes it away. He can get flustered once Kaoru is no longer in danger.

”This might sting”, Shu warns, and _might_ is an understatement, proven by the hiss that escapes Kaoru’s mouth once Shu begins his work.

The wound did bleed, but when Shu cleans it, as gently as possible, he finds to his relief that it doesn’t seem to be too deep. Still, he takes the utmost care to clean it and then instructs Kaoru to hold a towel on it while he grabs bandages. All taken care of, the wound doesn’t seem too bad anymore, and Shu breathes in deep while washing his hands in preparation for the next one.

”Now for the arm”, Shu sighs. From the placement of the wound he can infer that Kaoru got it while shielding his face with his arm, and that – that’s another thought Shu just can’t bear, so he chooses to ignore it.

”You’re _sure_ you’re okay with this? Your hands are shaking pretty badly”, Kaoru worries, and it’s not something Shu wanted to be reminded of, really, but –

”That doesn’t matter”, he gives as a reply, keeping his voice steady. ”I’ll worry about that when I’m done.”

Kaoru nods, and Shu begins to wipe blood off his arm.

This wound is a bit deeper, but doesn’t seem to require a doctor, either. Kaoru will have to be careful with moving for a while, though, and…

_Oh_. UNDEAD’s live, in the clothes Shu made for Kaoru, a week from now. The safest option would be to skip the live entirely, but… Shu can’t ask Kaoru to do that, not when he wouldn’t do the same in Kaoru’s situation.

”The live...” he mutters.

”Sorry.” Kaoru’s voice… _shakes,_ and Shu lifts his gaze, surprised. ”I screwed up, didn’t I?”

”If you are careful with these until the live, I’m sure they won’t get any worse –”

”No, I mean my face.” Kaoru shakes his head. ”I know it’s – my best quality, and you worked so hard on the costumes, only for me to get this on my face and ruin it.”

There’s an unpleasant jolt inside Shu’s stomach as he processes the deeper meaning of those words. He needs to address this immediately, needs to tell Kaoru it’s okay, and without thinking it through he lays everything else down and lifts his hands to cup Kaoru’s face.

”Non, non, who told you that”, he whispers, staring firmly into Kaoru’s eyes. ”There is… so much more to you than that. You mustn’t underestimate your own value.”

”Itsuki…?” Kaoru begins, startled, but Shu has more he wants to say so he shakes his head, and Kaoru quiets.

”It doesn’t matter that your face isn’t flawless. The mark can be covered, and you’ll be just as radiant as always. It’s more important that you’re _safe.”_

Kaoru nods, still stunned, and Shu sighs, removing his hands. Now, where were they –

He pauses when he realises Kaoru is still staring at him, eyes wide, and he’s… well, he’s _blushing,_ his whole face darkened, and it actually takes Shu a moment to realise _why_ he’s pulling that face.

Hm. Now that he thinks about it, the touch just now _was_ a little bit intimate.

Shu clears his throat and pointedly gets back to treating Kaoru’s arm. The silence that hangs over them is different, somehow, and while Shu avoids looking at Kaoru’s face, he’s almost certain that Kaoru’s eyes are once again persistently on him.

”There.” Shu finishes tying the bandage. ”How does your cheek feel?”

”Numb”, Kaoru mutters. ”Just a bit.”

”Let me see it.” Shu wipes his hands on a towel. He’ll have to do a lot of laundry after this, to get all the blood off their clothes and towels. He minds it less than he should. He’ll fret over all the blood stains later, but strangely he’s not losing it over the blood nearly as bad as he should.

The reason why might be right here, he thinks, as he removes the towel from Kaoru’s face and carefully presses two fingers against his cold cheek.

”It’s better, I think.” Kaoru’s voice is quiet, and his gaze bashful under his eyelashes.

”That’s good.” Shu wipes Kaoru’s hair off his face. ”It hurts less?”

”Yes.” the word comes out slightly strangled, and the next words are so quiet, they’re more like a whisper. ”Did you mean it?”

”Hm?” Shu flicks his gaze up from Kaoru’s cheek to his eyes, to find that they’re wide, almost alarmed. ”Did I mean what?”

He’s said a lot of things today, and from the vague phrasing he has no idea _which_ of those statements Kaoru is referring to.

”D-do you”, Kaoru stutters, ”really think I’m radiant?”

Shu blinks, stunned. He did say that, didn’t he? But it was… it was just…

”But you are?” Shu’s own voice feels hoarse in his throat. He still doesn’t understand why Kaoru is getting so hung up on this – or maybe he doesn’t _want_ to understand, because that would be… what’s the word? Terrifying, maybe?

”So you _did_ mean it?”

”Yes, I did.” Shu frowns. ”Hakaze, what is it? Why is this so important?”

”I… maybe it isn’t”, Kaoru casts his eyes down, sighing. ”It’s nothing, after all.”

Shu opens his mouth, but he wonders if he should push it. It’s clearly _something,_ so Shu shakes his head.

”Non, just say it. You can pretend you’re talking to Mademoiselle, if that makes it easier.”

”I don’t want to pretend that”, Kaoru blurts out, voice suddenly higher in pitch. ”I want it to be you.”

Shu exhales softly, taken aback, and his brain _finally_ starts catching up.

”You want it to be me”, he repeats flatly.

”I want you to think those nice things of me. I thought, you’re probably only nice because I’m nice to Mademoiselle-chan, but then I thought, maybe there’s a chance, but then I thought, maybe you just feel responsible because you made my costume, but now I don’t know what to think anymore.”

Kaoru speaks too fast for Shu to follow, so he latches on to the most pressing thing here.

”You want it to be me.”

”That’s what I said”, Kaoru huffs. ”It’s embarrassing, so I’d rather not repeat it –”

”I mean”, Shu shakes his head, gestures for Kaoru to be quiet, ”you’d rather hear _me_ praise you than _Mademoiselle?”_

”Well, that’s what I...” Kaoru quiets, finally, as he seems to realise the full meaning of those words. The loveliest blush Shu has ever seen blooms all over Kaoru’s face, as he averts his gaze down again. ”That’s what I said. And also what I meant.”

Shu feels out of words, out of breath, nearly out of his body. He’s been confessed to before, by some particularly courageous individuals, but none of those situations could quite compare to _this_. He’s so disoriented, he says the exact opposite of what he actually wants to say – perhaps just to hear Kaoru say it one more time, but more clearly.

”But you don’t like boys complimenting you.”

”Well, maybe there’s an exception to that.”

”And that’s me?”

”Itsuki-kun”, Kaoru says, sounding exasperated now, ”you’re supposed to be _smart.”_

”I _am_ smart. You just need to be clearer with...” with a sigh, Shu closes his eyes. ”Apologies. I’ve never been in this situation before.”

”No one’s confessed to you before?” Kaoru blinks. ”Really?”

”I meant–” Shu slowly opens his eyes, but can’t quite meet Kaoru’s, ”–it’s never been mutual. I’d know what to say if I was going to reject you.”

A silence follows. Too long a silence, Shu thinks, but he fears he’ll faint if he looks at Kaoru right now.

”It’s… mutual?” Kaoru asks slowly.

”Look who’s lacking in smarts now”, Shu huffs. ”Are you going to make me _say_ it?”

”That would be nice, actually?”

”Well then”, Shu forces himself to meet Kaoru’s gaze. ”I… accept and return… your feelings.”

”Thank you”, Kaoru sighs, closing his eyes. He leans closer, closer, clo…

”Wait”, Shu tilts his head back and slaps a hand over Kaoru’s mouth. ”Y… you’re a patient. Recovering. You n-need rest.”

”Itsuki-kun”, Kaoru whines, taking Shu’s hand in his and lifting it off his mouth. ”I want to k...”

”Non”, Shu protests, voice rising in pitch. ”I-I said you need rest first. Come on, then.”

Shu stands up, pulling Kaoru with him. The wounds are bandaged, the cheek seems better… now Shu wants Kaoru to lie down and heal.

He takes Kaoru to his bedroom. Kaoru only has his school uniform, so…

...Well, now would be the time to get flustered about making Kaoru lose his shirt. Shu intends to just size him up to decide whether his own clothing fits (though naturally he remembers Kaoru’s exact measurements), but finds himself overly distracted by all this bare skin. For a moment he just stands there, until Kaoru crosses his arms over his chest.

”If you won’t let me kiss you, you don’t get to stare”, Kaoru complains, and Shu lets out a squeak, a sound so embarrassing he turns around immediately to hide the flush of his cheeks.

”I… I was just wondering if I have anything that would suit you.” His own pyjamas are not something a boy like Kaoru would wear. Does he own a single t-shirt?

After some careful rummaging of his closets, Shu does find a t-shirt. The logo on it belongs to some English rock band, and Shu makes a mental note to chide Rei on leaving his old clothing at Shu’s place. Not willing to search further, Shu also hands Kaoru a pair of silken pyjama pants. It’s the best he can do for now.

”You will stay here and sleep”, Shu instructs.

”Aren’t you gonna join me?” Kaoru pouts, pulling on the shirt. Thankfully, the size fits.

”I will clean the bathroom first, and then…” Shu hesitates. He doesn’t usually sleep this early, but… ”And then I will join you.”

Kaoru settles for that, and Shu keeps his promise, coming back after thoroughly cleaning and washing everything of blood. Either Kaoru hasn’t yet fallen asleep or he wakes up to Shu entering the room, but he’s awake when Shu changes his own clothes in darkness and then slips into the bed next to Kaoru.

”You’re sure I can’t get a kiss?” Kaoru whispers, shuffling closer to Shu. They’re _very_ close now and Shu doesn’t think he can survive a kiss alive, so he shakes his head minutely.

”Just try to sleep”, he hushes, lifting a hand to card his fingers through Kaoru’s hair. Kaoru snakes an arm around Shu’s waist, and Shu sighs, doing his best to settle into this strange and new embrace.

He _does_ press his lips against Kaoru’s forehead, but the moment is over before Kaoru can react in any way.


End file.
